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The Vinexpo Asia-Pacific wine and spirits exhibition will take place in Hong Kong in May |
CHINA. China has overtaken France as the world’s biggest market for red wine, according to research by IWSR commissioned by Vinexpo.
The research claims that red wine drinkers in China and Hong Kong consumed 1.865 billion bottles in 2013 (155 million nine-litre cases), up by +136% over the last five years. French consumption reached 150 million cases while in Italy (previously second-placed) 141 million cases were consumed.
Between 2007 and 2012, red wine consumption in China increased by an average of +27% annually, although the rate of growth slowed slightly in 2013, the research says. Consumption decreased by -5.8% and -18% in Italy and France respectively last year.
The data has been released in the run up to the Vinexpo Asia-Pacific wine and spirits exhibition, to be held in Hong Kong on 27-29 May. Over 18,000 wine buyers and importers will attend the event, which will feature 1,300 exhibitors from 28 countries.
According to the research, total wine consumption in China (red, white and rosé) is estimated to have reached 160 nine-litre cases in 2013. More than 80% of the wines consumed in China are made from grapes grown in that country, which is now the fifth largest wine producer in the world. It is predicted that growth will accelerate again in the run up to 2017, when total Chinese wine consumption should reach 230 million nine-litre cases.
The slowdown last year is said to have affected home-produced wines rather than imported wines. Between 2007 and 2013, wine imports grew +700% and now account for 18.8% of all wine consumed in China today.
Vinexpo CEO Guillaume Deglise said: “The growing consumption of red wine in China underlines the strategic importance of that country to wine makers in Europe and also to major wine trading nations such as the UK, which has a leading world position as a wine merchant, importer and exporter.”
